


Better

by boneslen



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, M/M, Past Steve Rogers/Tony Stark, Tony-centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-07
Updated: 2018-05-07
Packaged: 2019-05-03 08:06:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,313
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14564643
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/boneslen/pseuds/boneslen
Summary: Steve and Tony finally meet again after two years apart, but things have changed. Steve has to realize that Tony loves someone else now. Someone who treats Tony much better than Steve ever did.(post AIW)





	Better

Doctor Strange made Tony happy.

Steve knew that. He saw the way Tony smiled at the magical doctor, and the way Tony's eyes were focused solely on Strange as he laughed with a wide grin on his face. Steve could hardly remember when that loving smile was last directed at him.

In all honesty, Steve didn't know what he should've expected. He came back to Tony, desperate with a sincere apology, hoping Tony would find it in himself to forgive him. And he did. But that was it. Their relationship was tense, with only brief conversations and nods of indication. There weren't any more jokes or smiles or even friendship. They were only connected by the sole focus of defeating Thanos.

However, there was still the same kindness in Tony, as he let Steve stay in the Avengers compound as they regained their footing. They were struggling, all of them, but Tony still had the same fire in him as before. 

 

Steve shot awake once he heard the sound of a loud clanging coming from the kitchen. With a rapidly beating heart, Steve crept towards the door and opened it slightly, only to see the dim glow of the kitchen light. 

There were no intruders, no Thanos, and no harm. Steve exhaled softly, ready to close the door and go to bed again when he heard a soft laughing. Steve was wrong—someone was out there.

As Steve pushed the door open a bit wider, he saw Tony and Doctor Strange side by side. They seemed to be mixing some desert recipe in a messy heap of ingredients. It was 2:00am and Steve had no idea why the two men were up cooking this late at night. 

But the thing was, they looked happy.

"Shh," Tony whispered at Stephen, nudging him playfully as he slowly mixed the desert batter. "You're going to wake the others."

Stephen leaned close and gently brought Tony's face to meet his. "Let them hear."

Steve felt a wrenching pain in his gut as he watched Tony and Stephen kiss. They were slow and gentle, and Tony's hands left the mixing bowl to wrap around Stephen's neck.

Steve soundlessly closed the bedroom door, leaning against it as he registered the intimate moment he had just seen. They were lovers. Or at least in love. The devastation drowning Steve was immense, though he knew he had no right to feel this way. He had left Tony for good, abandoning him for Bucky after they beat him up once they revealed the truth about Tony's parents. Steve had no right to feel this way.

But he still did. 

 

 

Steve had wanted to talk to Tony privately for awhile. There needed to be a deep conversation about their relationship and the aftermath of their fight two years ago.

Fortunately, Steve glimpsed Doctor Strange leaving the compound early one morning. He didn't know where the doctor was going, but he hoped he wouldn't be back soon.

Steve headed down to Tony's lab, expecting it be similar to how it was when Steve used to visit Tony's labs. There used to be the faint smells of grease and metal in the air, with strewn papers and parts across the floor, and alcohol bottles littering every other free space.

That was why Steve was so surprised to see the difference. The only scent in the air was the freshness coming in from an open window, and papers were either organized or pinned up, as Tony seemed to rely more on technological advances than former liabilities. As for alcohol, there was none. The new lab was clean and high tech, and Tony was in the midst of it, working on a complex looking machine at the moment.

"Wow, Tony." Steve smiled gently at Tony as he turned around. Tony seemed to hesitate for a moment, but he quickly recovered and grinned back.

"I know, it's different. It's been a while."

There was a faint whirring from a corner and Steve saw Dum-E softly rolling into a table repeatedly. Steve remembered Dum-E from those many years ago when he used to visit Tony in his lab every night.

Steve shook his head. "At least some things are still the same."

Tony hummed in response and glanced at Dum-E quickly. He seemed nervous, an anxious energy radiating from his body. "What do you want to talk about, Rogers?"

The blunt confrontation caught Steve off guard, and he resorted to staring at Tony with a blank face. "I...uh—"

"—you can talk to me," Tony confided, walking away from his workbench to approach Steve. "Like old times, right?"

Steve was about to agree, but then he remembered Tony and Stephen's kiss the other night.

"No. Nothing is like old times, even though I wish it was. Tony, I need to talk to you about what happened two years ago and what happened to us."

An uncomfortable grimace came over Tony's face. "It doesn't matter anymore. We fought. And now we have to work together again. So let's just do this and then once we're done, maybe we'll be friends again and maybe not. If not, that's fine. We were barely friends in the first place."

"Tony, you know that's not true!" Steve desperately replied. "You know I loved you!"

Tony seemed shocked at the outburst, but his expression turned angry in a second. "But you loved Barnes more. You always loved him more! I'm not your second choice! Just because he's gone now doesn't mean I'm your rebound. I'm not here for you anymore. I don't love you anymore!"

Steve gaped at Tony. He had never expected Tony to say those words. Especially with such passion. But Tony was right. Steve had always assumed Tony would just be there for him. Even after he betrayed him. Even after he left him.

Tony turned away, but Steve could still sense the waves of emotional distress and pain rolling off of him.

Steve wasn't the one to comfort him anymore. Tony didn't want him to anymore.

"I'm sorry. I'm genuinely sorry, Tony."

The devastation and turmoil from before simply increased within Steve. Before, he thought there was a chance he could get Tony back. Now, Steve knew that chance had been long gone.

"What the hell happened?"

Steve looked behind him to see Doctor Strange in the laboratory doorway, glaring at Steve with the darkest look.

"We were just talking," Steve insisted. He went to look at Tony for his reassurance to Doctor Strange, but Tony was leaning against a table, facing away from the two men. His body was shaking slightly. The toll of fighting with Steve again must've brought back traumatic memories in addition to taking its toll on him once again.

Without acknowledging Steve again, Doctor Strange rushed to Tony. They were too quiet for Steve to overhear, and he took the cue to leave.

Before he exited the lab completely, he turned around again. Stephen was holding Tony's hand and talking to him in a deep and comforting tone. Tony was still looking down, until he finally looked up at Stephen who was on the right of him.

Stephen said something else that made Tony smile slightly, and Stephen nudged Tony comfortingly. Tony then laughed, a soft sound that made Steve's heart yearn.

As Stephen kissed Tony's cheek, Steve closed the door with a quiet click. He stayed in that spot for a moment, then squeezed his eyes shut. He knew Stephen was better for Tony. Tony had always deserved happiness, but Steve never provided that. Steve had hurt Tony again and again, while believing that his actions were out of love. They weren't.

Steve knew that Tony and Doctor Strange would be a better couple. They did love each other, but it was a different kind of love than Steve and Tony's. 

It was better.

**Author's Note:**

> I used to really like Tony & Steve's relationship, but in CACW, it seemed like Steve didn't care for Tony as much as he did for Bucky, and that made the stony relationship unhealthy. But in AIW, I loved Tony & Stephen's chemistry and the way they cared for each other in such a pure and selfless way. 
> 
> So in my opinion, it's out with the old, in with the new.


End file.
